The Last Time
by Johanna Mason
Summary: The first conversation Johanna has with Finnick after being rescued from the Capitol. Complete for now.


Hair raiser, they used to call her; The capitol that is.

Not that there's much left of that.

She thought, almost smiling. Almost.

Not much left of HER either. A wisp of a woman lying semi concious in a hospital bed. Her IV drip. Dripping. The Morphling pump pumping. She was getting bored of all this, not that she didn't mind all this sleeping around, that was a perfect arrangement. But she badly wanted someone to talk to. And all she had was the IV which was still stinging her bicep, and the morphling drip, which was working wonders on the pain really.

But not really doing anything to silence the psychological damage.

It was supposed to have of course.

But she couldn't get it out of her head. And the murky morphling seemed to make it play in slow motion.

After what seemed like hourse of rolling around, muttering and cursing, she finally became aware of someone sitting beside her. Hunched, catlike eyes trained on her sadly.

"Finnick?" She whispered, her voice hoarse.

But he only stared and then suddenly his arm reached out really fast.

She flinched.

So did he.

"I'm sorry." He whispered back.

"Yeah." She whispered back, laughing softly. "Endless torture works wonders on advancing the reflexes."

He didn't find this funny at all, or maybe he did and didn't want to satisfy her weird sense of humour. He only reached out his hand, slower, and it landed on her sore and tender head which he proceeded to caress.

"Your hair." He whispered astonished. "I thought you wanted to grow it out!"

"Yeah, apparently Snow heard that rumour as well." She wanted it to sound indifferent but her voice hurt. She really had wanted to grow it out, hoping she wouldn't have to act so crazy when the rebellion was done. "

Oh. How are you?" He asked.

"That's a stupid question."

"Yeah, sorry."

"Why d'you keep apologizing, you don't owe me anything," she said.

His turn to laugh now.

"What?" She said defensively.

"That's naïve Johanna," Finnick said, shaking his head.

"I'm anything but." She replied. But she didn't say it defiantly. She said it in a voice that sounded athousand years old.

Finnick hesitated.

Finally he said. "About other things."

She stared at him, the light she had turned on moments before illuminating her melty eyes. "I don't understand."

"I do owe you things. I should have worried about you more. You're my best friend."

"Well, that would have been a waste. Because I'm fine now." She said indifferently.

"I thought morphine was supposed to make people more emotional."

"Well, these "people" haven't met me." she huffed.

"Yeah." He said and smiled.

They were quiet for a while, but then Johanna said. "At the ropes again are you." Nodding her head towards his hands which were moving at quite a pace looping crazy knots and loosening them again with the pull of one end.

He called it thereapy.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing really, I guess I'm getting out the relief. I have my two girls safe and sound."He said, with a weak smile.

"Although you spent most of your time deteriorating about the other right?" She was a bit annoyed when she put two and two together. He SHOULD have worried about her more. She figured he had just been in some irrational state of mind, thinking they'd actually hurt HER!

Finnick was loved in the capitol, even those idiots wouldn't stand for him getting killed, or (the painful truth), Annie getting killed, which was the same thing. Whereas when Johanna had gone through... _that_. He hadn't thought about HER pain.

She was the one who'd actually known something. Not to mention, making it clear in the games, her 3 minute talk with Ceasar. She knew of course, he did care about her, and maybe it got shrowded when Annie was around. Johanna had long accepted her jelous side. She didn't think she'd be able to bear them. She remembered the one time she'd met her. Annie. She and Finnick were on opposite sides of the place.

_Smart boy_ she had thought.

Annie seemed so lost. Finnick had of course, told her all about Annie, but she hadn't expected her.

Frail bedraggled wisp of a girl. But she understood why her simple innocence appealled to him. They had only been kind of friends then, so she had told him she was alright. It was hard to hate a girl so small. Johannas weakness had always been the helpless. Well, at least then anyway.

Finnick reacted as she knew he would.

"Jo- you know I care about you!"

"I know."

"Then what." He didn't say it harshly. He said it like he'd given up. On who? Her? His hands moved at the speed of something very fast. "Then why. Why admit you owe something to me. Then say you should have thought about me more? What's the point Finnick. Are you trying to rub it in? I understand, I might not make it through this stupid war anyway. Thanks for the tea and sympathy." Dhe shut him out. Just like that. Of course, he would't stand for it.

"I- I don't understand what you're getting at Jo."

"Oh don't you?" She hissed. "Master of love himself aren't you?" She sneered.

"Shut-up." He said. So simply. He wasn't joking around, in fact he sounded disbelieved.

"What." She replied.

"Are you being serious with me Mason?" He whispered. Maybe she was wrong but his eyes seemed to shine brighter. Was he? No, he'd never cry over her she thought.

She clenched her teeth.

"Yes." She had worked herself up so much that the morphling seemed to think she was awake or something.

She glanced at the drip, and in her anger she seemed to have pulled it out.

She could feel the gasp escape her before she heard it. And Finnick was up in a flash, grabbing her arm and easing it back in.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause you any pain."

And for a moment he looked so sad, she knew he wasn't talking about this pain right then.

And that's all he needed to say.

"Could you increase this thing, I'm feeling all warm and tingly." She said, trying for a joke, but her eyes gave away her compassion.

She was glad, he could understand her the way he could; Because if it had been anyone else, they would have thought she was being insensitive.

And he smiled slightly.

Small and quick. Not the kind that made the girls come running, not the crooked one, the genuine one.

"I don't think I can decrease the amount of hot radiating off me Johanna, because if I could, I sure would, just for you."

"And they say romance is dead." She replied wanly, smiling with her eyes. "I think you put the needle in too deep."

She said suddenly, eyes widening.

"I don't want to go. Not when-" she sighed. "Gosh Finnick I'm not dying, sheesh." She said when he had stumbled up and grabbed her hands.

"How am I to know that?" He asked.

"Because I'd never do it your face."She sighed.

"Neither would I."

"I'm going now." She whispered. "Wish me luck in loopy land." Even she didn't know just then, if she was refering to the fact that she was letting him go and informing him that she may go crazy, or that she was just off for a stroll in "loopy land" with her mind induced with morphling.

"Okay." He whispered back.

And then he kissed her. But it wasn't like the drunk ones in the capitol, or the joke ones to annoy Cashmere.

It was a real lingering one.

The kind Johanna thought she'd never live to see. The ones she had secretly dreamed about when alone.

And he closed his eyes, and she felt the tears trace down her cheeks. And for once, she smiled before falling asleep.

No bad memories included.

* * *

(Authors Note: Something that I thought up 2 says ago and wrote in a flash, didn't realise it was this long, hope you enjoyed some of the finnick/johanna antics, because they sure as hell aren't given enough love.

**Disclaimer: I do not own either characters, all rights reserved to Suzzane Collins.**


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